Sonia and Rahul Gandhi React to Congress Drubbing in State Elections

Sonia Gandhi, Congress party president and her son Rahul Gandhi who is the party’s vice president.

After their party conceded defeat in state elections in three of four states where assembly election results were announced Sunday, the Congress party president and vice president faced the Indian media.

Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi said that they accepted defeat in Delhi, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh but said they held out hope for a win in Chhattisgarh in central India.

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Edited excerpts from Sonia Gandhi’s statement at the Indian National Congress party office in New Delhi Sunday:

Mrs. Gandhi: We accept the verdict of the people in all humility. We congratulate our opponents for winning the elections. We’re still rather hopeful for Chhattisgarh but we don’t know just yet.

I want particularly to thank all our workers, not only at the state level but also from other states. They participated in the campaign and they worked very hard everywhere during the campaign.

Naturally, this result calls for deep introspection. We have to understand to look at the any reasons for this defeat.

We have to look into the way we took or did not take our message to the people and we have to look at the way our own party is equipped or not so well equipped in running an election.

There will be a number of reasons for these defeats. Perhaps, price rise obviously has affected people.

In states like Rajasthan, we thought our chief minister had run some very very good programs. But again it’s a big question mark.

In Delhi, a great deal of work was done…

We will introspect seriously and take all necessary actions to rectify our mistakes and the way we function.

General elections are quite different. People in state elections focus on the personality of the person who is leading their government, and at the national level, people look at the person who is looking to lead them at the national level.

The issues will be slightly different. At the state level they are localized, at the national level they are nationalized.

At the opportune time the name of the prime ministerial, the name of him, will be announced.

Excerpts from Rahul Gandhi’s statement:

Mr. Gandhi: Look, one second, can I speak? Through these elections, the people have delivered a message. That message has been taken by me and our party not just with our minds, but with our hearts.

The Congress party has the ability to transform itself, to stand up to the expectations of the people of this country and the Congress party is going to do that.

The Congress party, myself, and the Congress party president, would like to congratulate our opponents who have won the elections.

We work for the people of this nation and it is our duty to listen to you. We have heard what you have said and we are going to do whatever you want us to do to live up to your expectations.

Sheilaji [Sheila Dikshit the chief minister] has worked hard in Delhi and I believe that she gave good governance. But I think what we need to do as a party is move ahead of just giving good governance to a place, a paradigm where we are giving serious space to the common man.

Political parties are not giving adequate voice to the man on the street. It’s our job to do that.

I am going to put all my efforts in transforming the organization of the Congress party and…give you an organization that you can be proud of and has your voice embedded inside it.

I think both the major parties are thinking, particularly in Delhi, are thinking about politics in a traditional way and we need to start thinking of politics of empowerment of people. I am going to do it very aggressively in the party. I am going to work with the leadership of the party and make this central.

I think the Aam Aadmi Party has involved a lot of people who the traditional parties did not involve. We are going to learn from that and we are going to do a better job than anyone else in the country in ways that you cannot imagine right now.

The Congress party has a vision and perspective of this country…the BJP has another. Our job is to push our perspective and what we focus on.

My focus is what I can help the people of this country achieve. How can we transform the country to use the power of the youth in this country?

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